The present invention relates generally to telephone-based interfaces with telecommunications networks, and more particularly, to methods and systems for connecting a telecommunications network to a network having devices coupled through a high speed digital bus.
In standard telephone service, sometimes referred to as xe2x80x9cplain old telephone servicexe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cPOTS,xe2x80x9d peripheral devices (e.g., telephones, modems, etc.) transmit analog voice signals over copper wire telephone lines to a telephone office, such as a local area telephone exchange. At the exchange, the analog signal is converted to a 64-Kbps (kilobits per second) digital signal. Generally, conventional telephone service is thereafter restricted to a speed of 64 Kbps.
This standard telephone service suffers several disadvantages. First, the slow-speed and low bandwidth of conventional telephone service makes it impossible to access more than one outside telecommunications network at a time. For example, a user could not talk on the telephone while surfing the Internet. The only currently available solution is to physically install a second telephone line. Second, current telephone service is physically inflexible. For example, a user desiring access to outside telecommunications networks from an additional room in a house must physically install an additional length of copper wire telephone line and a telephone jack to that room.
New wide band services have been developed to allow more data to be transmitted over existing copper wire telephone lines than standard telephone service. Examples of wide band services include the digital subscriber line (xDSL) standard and the Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN). The xDSL standard, which employs defined modulation techniques to digitally pack data onto the copper wire telephone lines, supports data rates of greater than 1 Mbps (mega bits per second). More information about the xDSL standard and ISDN is available from the International Telecommunications Union (ITU). These new services, while a step in the right direction, do not solve the above noted problems with standard telephone service.
Recent advances in digital bus technology make possible the interconnection of a variety of consumer electronic devices to form a multimedia network. One such digital bus technology is the IEEE-1394 digital interface standard, which enables data communications of greater than 100 Mbps among consumer electronic devices, such as video camcorders, electronic still cameras, video cassette recorders, personal computers, and any other digital audio/visual equipment that include a serial interface. More complete information regarding the IEEE-1394 standard is available from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).
FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a typical multimedia network 100, including various consumer electronic devices 110-150 coupled through a high-speed serial bus 160. The high-speed serial bus 160 may be, for example, an IEEE 1394 bus. Generally, the multimedia network 100 is located in one physical building, such as a home or an office. The exemplary multimedia network 100 in FIG. 1 includes digital video camera 110, digital video monitor 120, personal computer 130, digital VCR 140, and printer 150. The high-speed serial bus 160 supports communication of digital audio/video data and computer transmission data between the network devices. One disadvantage of multimedia network 100 is that consumer electronics devices 110-150 cannot access devices in an outside telecommunications network and vice versa.
Systems and methods consistent with the present invention overcome the above and other disadvantages in conventional telephone service and home multimedia networks by providing multiple logical connections between an outside telecommunications network and a multimedia network having devices coupled through a high-speed digital bus. In particular, a system consistent with the present invention includes a peripheral device connected to a telephone network through a telephone line and connected to a multimedia network through a high-speed serial bus. The peripheral device establishes and maintains multiple logical connections between devices in the multimedia network and devices in the telecommunications network.
A method consistent with the present invention connects a multimedia network having devices coupled through a high-speed digital bus to an outside telecommunications network. In particular, a peripheral device receives a call request. The peripheral device then determines whether sufficient bandwidth is available to establish and maintain the requested connection. If so, the peripheral device allocates bandwidth to the requested connection.
The foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary only and should not restrict the scope of the claimed invention. Both are intended to provide examples and explanations to enable others to practice the invention. The accompanying drawings, which form part of the specification, illustrate presently preferred embodiments of the invention and, together with the following detailed description, explain the principles of the invention.